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Serve God, save the planet, and have some organic wild mushroom risotto. by Melissa Cook I could not possibly be more excited about the event we are hosting in honor of Earth Day this year: a talk from Dr. Matthew Sleeth, author of Serve God, Save the Planet: A Christian Call to Action. His book and his message are based on the personal experience of his family as their growing spiritual convictions led them to "downsize" their lifestyle: within a few short years, the Sleeths moving from a big two-story house into a home the size of their former garage, traded their multiple luxury cars for one energy-efficient model, planted an organic garden, learned to live without a dishwasher or dryer, gave away about half of their possessions, and devoted more and more time to sharing the message of environmentalism with one of the groups that has historically embraced it least: mainstream Christians. Somehow, with his mix of personal experience and environmentally-oriented theology, Dr. Sleeth has found a way to build a much-needed bridge between people on both sides of today's culture wars - a fact that is illustrated by the recent publication of his book in paperback (originally published in hardback by leftist/eco printers Chelsea Green) by the evangelical publishing powerhouse Zondervan, a partnership Sleeth described as akin to "Ted Kennedy and Dick Cheney starting a business together." Join us Thursday evening, April 26, to hear the spiritual call to action that is inspiring Christians all over the US to make the kind of simple, everyday changes that "saving the world" inevitably begins with. In honor of Dr. Sleeth's visit, we're holding the first-ever St. A's Sustainable Potluck the same night. (Dinner will begin at 6:30 and the talk will begin around 7:00 pm.) I challenge each of you to learn something new by participating in this dinner. I cannot wait to see the creativity of our community as you each interpret "sustainability" in your own way to create your potluck dish. Consider preparing a dish from organic foods (which are grown without earth-polluting pesticides) or food from one of our many local farmers' markets (which produces less greenhouse gas getting from farm to table). Or maybe you'll bring a vegetarian dish (which requires less energy input per calorie produced than animal-based food) or something raw (which saves cooking energy). How you interpret sustainable food is up to you! And if you aren't feeling culinary, how about picking up a bottle of organic wine or some locally-baked bread to share? I look forward to seeing you all for this exciting night. If you are ready to try your hand at organic or local cooking, but need some suggestions, email me (sunshinecook@gmail.com) for some organic/local food ideas! For more information about Dr. Sleeth and his book, visit www.servegodsavetheplanet.org. Copyright © 2007 St. Augustine by-the-Sea
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